


The Other End of the Line

by HenceNothingRemains



Category: Be More Chill - Iconis/Tracz, Be More Chill - Ned Vizinni
Genre: Angst, God I feel so dirty writing these tags, Horny Jeremy, Instagram Stalking, Jeremy being an idiot, M/M, Masturbation, Not terrible phone sex written by horny 13 year old virgins, Page 80 fic, Porn With Plot, Smut, The longest page 80 fic, There's plenty of that too, This is a real fanfiction, Video game mentions, Work In Progress, and plenty of it, but not just smut, discontinued, how did I write this?, multitasking masturbation, page 80
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-19
Updated: 2019-02-28
Packaged: 2019-09-21 07:20:27
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 6,843
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17039288
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HenceNothingRemains/pseuds/HenceNothingRemains
Summary: It really did start as an effort to multitask. It really was supposed to end after one night. It really had been an accident. Jeremy didn't really get off to Michael's voice. Right..?-In other words, this is a page 80 fic that creates a slow burn to Jeremy and Michael's relationship, and doesn't make them jump from bros to lovers engaging in phone sex over the course of 500 words.





	1. Multitasking

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> NOTE: I wrote this at a time where I was trying to figure out where I fit as a writer. After experimenting with lots of things, I have finally found my place, and it is not with this fic. I apologize to anyone who wanted this story to be continued, and to all the people I promised I would continue it to. This story makes me feel icky and generally disappointed in myself, but I'm going to own my personal failures, as opposed to orphaning the work. Read this story with the caution that it will never be finished. Ever.

_Come on. Come on. Go, go!_

Jeremy tapped his fingers on the surface of his desk. The internet reception was always the worst in his bedroom, but he'd rather wait it out to use his desktop than use the smaller screen of his phone from the bathroom. He glanced over to his door, making sure it was locked. Jeremy was, of course, waiting for his porn to load. 

He didn't really care what the video was about. He'd click on just about anything Pornhub suggested to him, regardless of the shitty acting or the appearances of the characters. Sometimes he'd enter in a keyword, but he found that he wasn't really that picky. 

Thd video finished buffering, finally, and Jeremy watched intently. This one was supposed to take place at some massage place or whatever, but to Jeremy it just looked like an empty room with a twin sized bed. The star of the porno took no time in disrobing immediately, and the other actor had an obviously exaggerated reaction to the size of the star's dick. 

Jeremy pulled down his own pants and attempted to maintain interest in the scene. He began to touch himself, and soon became hard. The foreplay didn't last long, and just as the actors began the actual sex, a loud noise startled Jeremy. 

His phone had started playing the intro to "Steady and Stable," his chosen ringtone. When he saw the caller ID, though, he was anything  _but_ steady and stable. 

Michael. Michael was calling. 

_Do I pick up?_

Obviously, there was no way Jeremy could talk to Michael while watching a porno. He couldn't pull it off. 

_...or could I?_

He thought, cringing as soon as it popped into his mind. 

_It couldn't be too hard, right? Easy._

The phone rang again. And Michael always answered when Jeremy called. Even when he was driving up the side of a mountain he passed on a road trip, once. Answering was the least Jeremy could do. He could multitask.

After one more ring, Jeremy hit accept, lifting the phone to his ear with his free hand. He quickly muted the video he was watching as Michael's voice poured into his ear. 

"Jeremy! Hey." He said on from the other side. 

"H-hey, Michael!" Jeremy said, his eyes still trained on the screen of his computer. 

"You won't believe what happened today."

"Huh? Tell me, M-Michael."

Jeremy hoped it wasn't obvious he was still masturbating. He really wasn't masturbating to Michael, but he knew that if Michael found out, their friendship would probably be over. No matter how long you know someone, it's still pretty weird to get off while talking to them.

"Well, you know how I feel about fancy restaurants, right?"

"...of course..." Jeremy said, trying hard to focus on what Michael was saying. 

"Well, it turns out, I finally found a fancy restaurant that I like! It's this little place by the mall, and," The content of Michael's words were soon lost, as Jeremy tuned out everything but the sound of his voice. This was something Jeremy was accustomed to, but he was alarmed by how natural it felt in the situation. 

The smooth voice began to hint at deeper undertones, and Jeremy felt a pang of excitement shoot up his groin. He stifled a moan as best he could, and luckily Michael talked right over the dampened noise. Jeremy glanced around the room, checking to make sure nobody else was in the room, even though he knew he'd locked the door. His conscience uneasy, Jeremy clicked off of the porn video. It was almost over, anyway. 

Jeremy let his eyelids drop down to halfway shut as Michael continued to speak, more of the little lilts in his voice which Jeremy never noticed before becoming audible. He bit his lip and picked up his pacing, imagining Michael's hands in place of his own. 

Jeremy's eyes shot open, realizing what he just thought. He drew in a deep, shaky breath. Then, Michael's voice stopped. 

"Jeremy, are you alright?" He asked. 

"Y-yeah!" Jeremy replied with what was intended to be a confident voice, but ended up coming out weakly. 

"Am I boring you? I know you don't really care about restaurants, I just thought--"

"N-no, Michael! It-it's okay, you can, uh, yeah..." In his own opinion, Jeremy thought he did pretty good at sounding normal for the better part of the sentence. Unfortunately, he knew that the final word came out way too breathy. 

"Alright, if you say so, Jeremy." The way Michael said Jeremy's name sent a million thoughts racing through his head, and it played and replayed in Jeremy's head as his hand moved even faster up and down. The "Jeremy" started as usual, but the end of the word dropped in pitch, coming out a little scratchy and  _way_ to sexy for Jeremy's own good  

Michael went on for another few minutes about the restaurant, but Jeremy didn't remember much of what was said. The only thing that stuck with him was when Michael said "Jeremy" again, driving the boy over the edge. Jeremy felt the mind-numbing, gratifying, and all-too-familiar feeling of an orgasm rush through his body. 

Seconds later, one thought rang through Jeremy's brain:

_What the fuck did I just do?_

Soon, another voice registered, though:

"All I said was 'What did you eat for dinner, Jeremy?' You don't have to get all huffy at me."

Jeremy attempted to swallow, his dry throat getting in the way. 

"Jeremy? You still with me?" Michael said, hearing nothing from the other end. 

"Um," Jeremy finally responded after evening out his breathing. "I'm gonna have to... call you back..." 

Jeremy immediately hung up, not waiting for any sort of response. He looked at the phone in his hand as he lowered it to the surface of the desk, then threw his head back and shut his eyes. He then repeated his previous thought out loud, still in shock from his own actions. 

"What the fuck did I just do?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! I hope you enjoyed part one. As you can see, I've got nine other parts to be published, and I hope that I'll have a release schedule ready by the next chapter's publication.  
> This is an ongoing series, not a porn-based fic. It's just got smut in the places that a story needs smut! This is a new approach to page 80 fics (I think, although I'm sure at least one other person has done this... right?) in which I deliver an actual story that builds to Michael and Jeremy having phone sex slowly, like it would actually happen.  
> As of now, though, Michael is pretty oblivious.  
> On a final note, I have not edited this chapter, I just really want to get it out so I can work on my other stories again. Thanks for going on this detour with me!


	2. Stalking

A locker door slammed behind Jeremy. He kept walking, knowing damn well whose locker he had just passed. It was Michael's, but Michael was the last person Jeremy wanted to talk to at the moment. He didn't know if he could even look the other boy in the eyes without blushing-- he realized earlier in the morning that the mere thought of Michael made his entire face burn red. 

It had only been last night that Jeremy had "multitasked," as he referred to it in his brain. 

 _Because I didn't really masturbate to him. That could not have happened._ Jeremy thought after the phone call.  _Michael is my best friend. I did not do that for real._

"Jeremy!" Michael shouted from halfway down the hall. Jeremy turned his head back, his brain flooding with thoughts of what he did the last time Michael said his name. 

Jeremy gritted his teeth through a smile, and he balled his fists so tightly that it began to hurt. He couldn't blush, he couldn't think about last night, he couldn't get turned on by someone who he never thought of that way before. 

"Jer, are you alright?" Michael said, laughing uneasily. 

"Yeah. Totally." Jeremy said, stiffly walking toward his friend. His best friend. Who he did not masturbate to last night. 

 _Okay,_ Jeremy grimaced, _I'm going to be fine._

"If you say so," Michael began. "Anyways, after we had our conversation last night, I watched a documentary on Netflix, and..." The shorter boy trailed off, looking Jeremy up and down.

To be honest, Jeremy looked like a mess. He'd forgotten to comb his hair that morning, he was wearing the same wrinkled jacket he'd worn the past five days in a row, and a bright shade of pink covered his cheeks as he stared wide-eyed at Michael. 

"What? Is there something on my face?" Michael asked, becoming embarrassed himself. 

" _No!_ " Jeremy said quickly. "I mean... no." He attempted to compose himself. 

"Seriously, dude, you look like ass. What's going on?"

"Nothing. Nothing is going on."

Michael's brow furrowed, his eyes becoming narrow slits behind his glasses. It wasn't like Jeremy to act this way, and it certainly wasn't like him to keep anything from his best friend. 

All Jeremy could think about was what Michael said-- specifically one word, "ass." Namely, Michael's ass. Jeremy had spent plenty of time around Michael, and could remember what he looked like from behind almost perfectly. His butt wasn't big or anything, but that one time Jeremy had accidentally brushed his hand against it proved that it was, in Jeremy's own words (or thoughts, at least),  _fine_. And then he thought about the time Michael sat on Jeremy's lap while playing video games, and how _not_ sexual it had felt, but that now it felt like it was the most arousing thing Jeremy had ever experienced in his entire life, and Jeremy thought that maybe the room was getting hotter and his pants were getting tighter and _don't look down_ because then Michael will look down and see that Jeremy had a boner. 

"I've gotta get to class, then." Michael said quietly, his eyes softening in disappointment. 

He walked away, and Jeremy stared at him as he walked away. He felt like the biggest pervert when he realized he wasn't just watching Michael leave-- he was looking at Michael's ass. 

_Shit._

 

\--<>\--

 

The only sound Jeremy could hear was his pants unzipping. Then the sound of skin rubbing against fabric as he pulled them off, and his boxers after that. Then the  _click_ of his door locking-- good thing he remembered that. His hand hovered over the mouse of his computer for a moment. He contemplated searching for a cheap porno again tonight, but soon his thoughts moved to his last attempt at watching porn. That, in turn, made him think about Michael. 

With a few clicks of his mouse, he was on Instagram. He typed a username into the search, feeling a blush creep up his face while a feeling of guilt simultaneously rose in his stomach. A page full of photos popped up; some text posts and memes were present, but for the most part, there were selfies and photos of Michael Mell. Just what Jeremy was looking for. 

He pushed away the feelings of guilt that creeped up his chest, scrolling through the seemingly endless catalogue of pictures. He idly began touching himself, though nothing quite excited him. 

 _Is this really something people do? It feels a little creepy,_ Jeremy thought as more and more photos of Michael appeared onscreen. He was considering giving up and logging onto Pornhub when a striking picture caught his eyes. Jeremy didn't remember it ever popping up on his feed, but then again, he didn't go on Instagram very often. 

It was a selfie Michael had taken at a retro-looking arcade, holding up a peace sign. But the thing that had Jeremy's attention was Michael's mouth-- it was wide open in a smile, and his tongue was sticking out. Jeremy's brain buzzed with inappropriate thoughts, his favorite being what Michael's toungue would look like on his cock. His imagination took over as he began moving his hand against his now-hardened dick, groaning quietly. 

Jeremy slowly became louder, and the groans were replaced with muttered obscenities. Thank God his father was asleep. He was so loud that he didn't hear his phone buzz. But when it buzzed a second time, he glanced up, still going at it. He read the two texts that appeared on his lock screen:

Michael: heyy 

Michael: jere 

Jeremy tried to ignore the messages, but a second later, his screen lit up again. 

Michael: whatcha doin 

Jeremy reached for his phone with his free hand, but closed his fist when his fingers brushed against a particular sensitive spot of his erection. Once he composed himself, Jeremy picked up his phone to respond to Michael. 

Jeremy: nothfing hbu

Almost instantly, another message bubble appeared on screen. 

Michael: my moms made me go to the community pool so im chillin on a lounge chair

Michael: yknow

Michael: just bored lol

Jeremy thought about Michael on a pool chair. Specifically, _laying_ on a pool chair. With very little clothing on. Jeremy moaned loudly, picking up his pacing again, but then realized he had to respond. 

Jeremy: cool wish i wasthere

Michael: ohh you totally should be

Michael: u should come over here

Michael: that would be great

Still stroking his erection, Jeremy imagined Michael saying those words to him. Not in his normal voice, but in the needy one that Jeremy only heard when Michael wanted something that Jeremy had. He typed a response.

Jeremy: cant sorrry

Michael: awww why not

Michael: im lonely

Jeremy's thoughts went back to the beach chair. He imagined himself on the beach chair, now, with Michael pinning him down. He imagined Michael grinding against him, with nothing but thin bathing suits keeping their skin from fully touching. He imagined Michael holding his hips down and kissing down Jeremy's neck and chest, then pulling off his bathing suit. He imagined that next Michael would begin to run his tongue against Jeremy's cock before taking the tip into his mouth, and then he imagined Michael deep throating Jeremy's dick. Before Jeremy could imagine what would happen next, he had come all over himself. 

Jeremy panted for a minute, catching his breath. He still felt on fire from the pleasure, but reached for his phone to text Michael again. 

Jeremy: maybe tommorow ok?

Michael: fine ok

After cleaning himself off, Jeremy returned to his computer. He used the snipping tool to save the photo he'd been looking at, creating a folder he titled "Michael." He found a few other pictures on the page-- a mirror selfie Michael took shirtless (Jeremy had never thought Michael would be one to take that kind of photo, let alone post it, but he was not disappointed), a selfie Michael took from a higher angle (which made Jeremy instantly imaging Michael on his knees beneath him), and a photo Jeremy had taken of Michael at the community pool a while back, which he liked because Michael's hair looked exceptionally sexy when it was wet. Once all the photos had been saved, he exited the browser, feeling more like he had just completed a spy mission than creepily saved photos of his best friend to masturbate to. 

_It's not that creepy. Right?_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahhh my poor boys. I don't know who I feel more bad for-- the sexually frustrated and endlessly horny Jeremy, or the oblivious Michael who's getting stalked on Instagram by his best friend for sexual pleasure.  
> This chapter was originally supposed to end with a phone call, but I think that would get too repetitive. Don't worry, there'll still be plenty of phone call masturbation in the chapters to come.  
> I said I was going to work on my other stories at the end of last chapter, but I feel pretty fucked up right now, especially where I left this chapter. Jeremy really is pretty hopeless (ha ha).  
> As for an update schedule, I still don't have one. Sorry! But you can expect the next chapter within a week, because I can't stop writing this shit. Anyways...  
> Thanks again for coming on this detour with me ;)


	3. Helping?

_Slam_. Again. Jeremy jumped.  

_Why does Michael always have to slam his locker shut?_

"Jeremy! Wait up!" Michael says, making an effort to catch up to the other boy, which would've been futile if Jeremy hadn't assisted Michael by slowing down his pace. Jeremy had grown accustomed to the flustered feeling that seized his body at every mention of Michael. At least, that's what he told himself. 

 _But, then again,_ he thought, _can I count myself as accustomed to it if my face just turned as red as I think it did?_

"You've kinda been blowing me off lately."

 _I wish._ Jeremy stopped in his tracks. Michael gave him a sidelong glance, halting his movement as well. _I mean-- what_ do _I mean?_

"I mean, you started acting weird a couple nights ago and I was just, I don't know... worried?"

Jeremy laughed nervously. 

"Me? Acting weird? I'm not," he stopped to laugh again, like this was the most absurd thing he'd ever heard. "I'm not acting weird, Michael."

"Sorry. I'm just trying to be a good friend, and I thought maybe you'd want to talk about it or something."

Jeremy repressed another laugh. This one, though, was genuine, because the thought of Jeremy ever confessing to his " _multitasking_ " was hilarious to him. Jeremy readied another dodgy "Haha, what?" response, but thought better of it. Michael was still his friend, after all (and that's all Jeremy wanted, right?), so he should at least be receptive of Michael's attempts to reach out. 

"Okay, um, how about tonight? I'll give you a call after I finish my homework."

Michael stared at Jeremy blankly as disappointment slowly set in. The wave of emotion finally crept up his face, and he looked at Jeremy like he was... devestated? But Jeremy told himself that couldn't be it. Why would Michael feel like that?

"You said you would go to the pool with me today."

Jeremy mentally kicked himself.

_Right. The pool._

"Oh, I, uh--"

"Nah, it's okay," Michael said, obviously attempting to save face, "We can just hang out tomorrow or something."

"You sure?" Jeremy asked. 

Michael nodded, his eyes flickering down to the ground. 

"I better get to class. Don't want to be late."

"Yeah," Jeremy replied. "Me too."

 

\--<>\--

 

 _Click-click. Click._ Jeremy smirked a little, but wiped the look off his face when he realized the level of weirdo that he had reached. He hadn't even considered watching porn. After locking his door, he'd gone straight to his desktop to pull up the photos of Michael. Michael at the arcade, Michael looking up, Michael in the bathroom, Michael at the pool. Jeremy unzipped his pants. Michael at Jeremy's fingertips, Michael on demand, Michael on Jeremy's computer screen, Michael just one call away. Jeremy took his pants and boxers off.

Michael Mell calling. Michael Mell calling. Michael Mell calling. Michael Mell calling.

Jeremy glanced at his phone, and he didn't think about the repercussions that could come from this. He just took a deep breath and answered the call. 

"Michael?" He asked, eager to hear the other boy's voice. 

"Jeremy, hey. Said you wanted to chat?"

"Yep." Jeremy half-truthed. He really wanted Michael to do all the chatting, but he wasn't going to outright say it. 

"Okay, shoot."

"Hmm, well," Jeremy began, trying to formulate another half-truth that would prompt Michael to go off on a tangent about something. Anything. "I've been having issues with... figuring out what game to buy. You know my job pays minimum wage and I'm trying to save for a car, so I'm trying this new thing where I only buy one game a month, so... do I get _Spiderman_ or _Detroit: Become Human_?" He asked. The truth percentage was pretty high now-- he hadn't lied at all about this situation. 

"That was _it_? You've been acting shady because you don't know what _video game_ to buy?"

"Will you help me?" Jeremy asked. 

"Hmmm..." Michael hummed, and Jeremy took this as his cue to begin touching himself. His computer's cursor landed on the photo of Michael in the mirror. He clicked to open it, and the experience was immediately enhanced. He heard and saw Michael, and it was the hottest experience he'd ever had while masturbating. "I can help you, Jeremy." Michael said quietly, and Jeremy swore to god Michael's voice was just teasing him now. 

"Please..." Jeremy pleaded before he could hold back the breathy moan. Michael didn't seem to notice. 

"Well, I personally enjoyed Detroit: Become Human because of its branching paths and replay value. But, oh," Michael's voice caught in the last word in a way that drove Jeremy crazy. Jeremy pretended Michael was moaning, though he knew it was too good to be true. "Connor, one of the main characters, is so fucking hot, it's insane," Jeremy's pulse quickened at Michael's words. "The whole time I was playing, all I could think was, 'Fuck _me_.'" Michael exaggerated the emotion behind his recounted thoughts, and Jeremy shoved his mouth into the sleeve of his jacket to muffle a loud moan. 

"But Spiderman is good, too, because it's a little less story-centric and more focus is put completeing on the missions, so if you want to, you can just zone out on the couch without worrying about ruining people's lives. But, on the other hand..." Michael continued for a while about the pros and cons of both games, but Jeremy started to remove his efforts on maintaining concentration on the content of Michael's words. 

Something had definitely shifted from two nights ago-- Michael's voice was rougher, and sounded a little scratchy. Jeremy couldn't quite pin it down to one specific change. He noted that, to his delight, Michael's voice continued to add lilts to certain phrases and words. 

Jeremy continued stroking his cock, his hands speeding up when Michael made a noise that could've been mistaken for something sexual. He wished his hand was Michael's-- wished that someday it _would_ be Michael's.

"But, anyways, both games are pretty fun, so whichever you choose, I think you'll enjoy it, Jeremy." 

 _Fuck_. Jeremy heard his name. _Fuck, I'm close_. 

" _Jer_ emy...?" Michael drew out the word, his voice acquiring a musical quality. 

_Fucking beautiful._

Jeremy made one last shameless noise, reaching a mind-numbing orgasm. 

The other end of the line went silent. 

 _Fuck. Did I just moan? Out loud? On the phone?_ Jeremy's heart pounded. 

"Jere, you there?"

"Y-yes?" He squeaked out in response.

"I hope I helped you with your problem. I've gotta go eat dinner now. See you tomorrow?"

Jeremy clicked the button to hang up, exiting from the photo he had pulled up on the screen.

 _Maybe,_ he thought, _maybe Michael didn't hear. Please, God. Or I'm fucking screwed._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> GAH! So here we go, chapter three. I've had this on lined up for a couple days, but I wanted to make sure it was fully edited before I published it. The last chapter had some inexcusably atrocious spelling and grammatical errors which I do not want to repeat.   
> My thoughts for this chapter are as follows: Jeremy is freaking the FUCK out but he wouldn't be in this situation if he didn't let his dick think for him; Michael is just. Oh my god, Michael.   
> Anyway, that's all I have to say for this chapter. Until next time!


	4. Driving

_Slam._

_Goddamnit._

Michael caught Jeremy by surprise, shutting his locker before Jeremy passed it. Jeremy attempted to duck away, fearing a confrontation about their phone conversation. 

"Jeremy?" Michael asked, his emotion unreadable. 

"H-hey, Michael..."

"Get over here. I want to talk to you about something."

Jeremy gulped nervously, walking forward to his friend's locker. His friend. His _best_ friend. 

"Yeah?" Jeremy replied calmly, trying to sound less afraid than he was. 

"Last night, on the phone, you sounded... like, really weird."

"I did?" Jeremy replied, pretending to be oblivious. 

"Yeah... are you okay? Is something going on at home?"

Jeremy froze physically and mentally. He couldn't have this conversation with Michael. He couldn't, not when he was fucking stalking Michael's Instagram, he couldn't talk about anything. He couldn't have a conversation like this without lying about _something_. 

"No. I mean yes. I mean... I don't know what I mean."

"Yeah, what do you mean? Because it sure beats me. Everything you do these days is confusing as hell." Michael snapped. Jeremy took a step back, surprised by Michael's sudden anger. "I just want to know what's going on with you."

"Michael, could we-- could we have this conversation later? I've gotta get to class, and--"

"No, Jeremy. I want answers." Michael's laid back attitude had completely disappeared by this point, replaced with a level of frustration that Jeremy had never seen before. 

Jeremy glanced down the hall for a moment. He _was_ going to be late to class very soon. That was true. 

"Alright, fine. I see I'm not going to get anywhere with you."

"Michael, I--"

"I just want to be able to talk to you. Like in middle school." Michael's fury dissipated almost as quickly as it had appeared. His words hurt Jeremy-- had his "multitasking" really affected their friendship that much? It had only been going on for a few days. 

"We can still... we can go to the pool. Today. Right?" He asked, hopeful. 

"No, I've got drum lessons today."

Jeremy's heart sank. Michael must have noticed, because he continued talking at a fast speed, in an obvious effort to console Jeremy. 

"But! You can come over for the weekend! If it's okay with your dad, that is. But it would be like when we used to spend every weekend together, and we could go to the pool _then_ , and maybe the arcade, too!"

Jeremy smiled. It had been a really long time since he'd gotten to sleep over at Michael's house, and he missed having all that time to spend with his friend. 

"That would be awesome! I'll ask my dad. I'm pretty sure he'll say it's okay." He replied. 

"For real? Like, you actually want to?"

"Yes!" Jeremy says, almost a little too excited. "I've wanted to do this for, like, months, but I can't just invite myself over to your place, and my dad _never_ lets anyone spend the night at my house."

Michael smiled. "You basically lived at my house last school year! Of _course_ you can invite yourself over!"

The two boys smiled, and time felt as though it had suspended. Jeremy felt like his life was starting to return to normal. Like, maybe this week was all just a fluke, and he would be able to stop all of his unnecessary thoughts about Michael. Maybe he'd even go delete the photos of him when school was over. 

"Well, if better get to my class. What time do you want me to pick you up tonight?"

"6:00?"

"Cool. Bye!"

"Bye."

 

\--<>\--

 

This week was not a fluke. Jeremy almost deleted the photos when he got home, but decided against it. 

_It can't hurt to have them on my computer, right? I might want to look at them again sometime. For not pervy reasons._

Jeremy started packing, rifling through his closet for a few half-decent outfits. 

_Wait. What am I thinking?_

He paused. 

_I want things to go back to normal. I have to delete them._

Jeremy reached under his bed to grab his sleeping bag. He hadn't used it since the summer, when he went to a summer camp with Michael. It was some religious thing his mom was forcing Michael to do, and Jeremy had signed up so they could spend more time together. That was the last time Jeremy had stayed with Michael, and Jeremy froze up at the sudden thought that crossed his mind. 

_I'm going to be sleeping in the same room as Michael._

Jeremy pulled his sleeping bag out, setting it on his bed net to his duffle bag. He looked in the mirror hanging from his wall. He looked like shit. He quickly changed into a different outfit, hoping this one looked a little better than the last. Then, he chuckled a little.

_I'm trying to impress Michael. Oh my god._

A few minutes later, Michael texted Jeremy. 

Michael: hey im here

Jeremy glanced at the clock. 6:04. He hadn't even asked his dad if he could spend the weekend at Michael's. Jeremy grabbed his sleeping bag and duffle, and ran through the house. He glanced at the living room couch, where his dad spent most of the day. He was asleep on the couch. 

 _I'll text him,_ Jeremy thought. 

 

\--<>\--

 

Michael sat in his car. He had pulled up to the driveway of Jeremy's house, but almost turned around once he was in park. This sleepover was Michael's worst idea of all time, the reason being, a few days into the school year, Michael had realized that their dynamic had shifted. Michael was still trying to finding his identity, but he knew one thing about himself for sure-- he had developed feelings for his best friend. At first, he just saw it as a mild inconvenience, but lately, it had created a major roadblock. He felt like he couldn't even _talk_ to Jeremy anymore without getting nervous, despite knowing him for years. 

And recently, Jeremy's actions were making matters worse. Jeremy had become distant, and the majority of their conversations were over text and phone calls. The last few times Michael called, though, Jeremy pretty much refused to talk. And Michael swore to God that he heard strange noises on the other end of the line. He told himself it was just his imagination, but one of them _really_ sounded like a moan. He partially wanted to believe it was, but hat would be irrational. Nobody jerks off while talking to their best friend on the phone. 

Michael snapped out of his spiraling thoughts when Jeremy flung open the passenger's door. Jeremy had changed since school-- he was now wearing a plain blue shirt with jeans. Michael wondered why he'd changed. Jeremy didn't ever put any thought into his clothing. 

 _He must've sweated through his shirt in PE,_ Michael thought. 

"Got a sleeping bag?"

"Yep."

"And a toothbrush?"

Jeremy playfully glared at Michael. 

"I only forgot once."

"Hey, I don't wanna run to CVS in the middle of the night again." Michael teased. 

He pulled out of the driveway, focusing on the road. Michael still wasn't very confident in his driving ability, but since Jeremy refused to even sit behind the wheel of a car, he had learned to push his doubts aside. 

The radio played softly in the background. Michael had set it to the Broadway station. He wasn't crazy about musicals, but he knew Jeremy was. Jeremy hummed along to the song that currently played. Jeremy was really good at singing. And he was really pretty. Michael glanced over to look at him each time they reached a stop light.

Michael, much to his dismay, felt his face heating up. He hoped his glasses were covering enough of his cheeks that it wasn't obvious. This had become a serious problem. This wasn't something Michael could ignore. He thought about making a move right then, as he parked his car in the driveway of his house. He thought about kissing Jeremy once, even if he never got to do it again. 

"You okay?" Jeremy said. Michael realized he'd been staring apprehensively at his friend for quite some time now. 

Michael nodded, opening the door of his car. 

 _Me?_ He thought. _Kiss Jeremy? Did I really just think about doing that? I'm in fucking trouble._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, look at that. I advanced the plot. Gee, it's almost like that's what I'm supposed to be doing here. Ha.   
> But, in all seriousness, I've been building to this for some time, and I'm really proud of myself that I've stuck to my outline so far. It'll be a while until this page 80 fix continues page 80-ing, but trust me, you will not be disappointed by the next phone call. Until then, enjoy a few chapters of Jeremy/Michael angst.  
> Also, Michael is finally the focus of (about half) of a chapter! I was planning on continuing as Jeremy's narrator, but in the spur of the moment, I switched to Michael after the second chapter break. His character needed to be defined a little more in the context of this fic-- I can't make y'all guess what he's thinking for the entire fic.   
> So, yeah, he's not THAT oblivious. He knows what he heard on the other end of the line, he just can't believe it.   
> I promise I'll stop ranting about my writing decisions soon, but I also wanted to add a little something about the original version of this chapter. At first, the story was planned to go somewhere a little different from here. Michael was extremely incorrect about Jeremy's issues. There was a whole sidestory planned in which Michael thought Jeremy was being abused at home. You can still see a few remnants from that storyline in the beginning of this chapter, but Michael drops the issue when Jeremy won't give him an answer. The reason I wrote this out was because I think it would be too much for a fanfiction. I'm used to writing novel-type stories with numerous subplots, but I've realized that most people who read fanfiction aren't here for extra details and detours (especially not in a page 80 fic). So, for now, I'm putting that subplot on hold. Who knows, though? Maybe I'll use it as a standalone story someday.   
> Also, I called this chapter driving, but there isn't very much driving in this chapter. Sorry. 
> 
> Annnnnd here are my thoughts for the chapter: Jeremy is trying to be less of a weirdo, but boy is he failing. And poor Michael should've went for the kiss. For the record, that would've ended with some car sex smut. Michael really missed out.   
> But that's it! Hope you enjoyed the chapter. I didn't edit it as extensively as usual, because it took so damn long to write.


	5. Joking

Jeremy set his bag down on the floor of Michael's room. It was smaller than his, or maybe the clutter of records, comics, and notebooks on the floor just made it feel that way. He carefully stepped over a Spiderman comic collection that stood between him and the door, not looking up from his concentration on the ground in time to see Michael round the corner of the hallway at full speed.

The two boys crashed into each other, toppling onto the floor as Michael's weight overpowered Jeremy's. Michael caught himself with his forearms, his face stopping mere inches above Jeremy's. Jeremy looked up into the other boy's eyes. They were wide-open, like Jeremy's, and his irises shined a warm brown. Jeremy opened his mouth to make a joking comment about their awkward position, but all he could think to say was _"Jesus Christ, you're beautiful_." And he could not say that.

Michael looked like he was searching for something to say, too. Jeremy assumed that Michael must've been mortified to be on top of Jeremy-- who wouldn't be? Especially if you were his most plantonic bro in the whole world. Jeremy was almost relieved when Michael moved one of his hands gently through Jeremy's hair.

_Wait. What?_

Jeremy felt a blush creep up his cheeks. Michael Mell in his bedroom, Michael Mell on top of him, Michael Mell carding his hand through Jeremy's hair, Michael Mell... blushing?

"Michael, what are you--" Jeremy started, cut off by a sudden noise from the boy above him.

Michael laughed. Michael laughed in Jeremy's face. Then, Michael stood up slowly, offering a hand to Jeremy.

"Sheesh, that was... ha, ha..." Michael said, laughing again.

"Yeah..." Jeremy said uncomfortably, reaching up slowly to grab Michael's hand. Normally, he would've jumped at the chance to hold Michael's hand, even if it was only for a moment, but right now he was furious.

 _How could he do that to me?_ Jeremy thought angrily. He could feel his face growing redder than it was before. _I mean, I get that we're friends and all, but he laughed in my face. Like it was a joke._

Michael smiled down at him.

 _Fucking prick. It_ was _just a joke._

"We'd better head downstairs. My moms probably have dinner ready by now." Michael said once Jeremy was on his feet again.

 

\--<>\--

 

Michael set his keys down on the counter of his bathroom. He attempted to fix his hair in the mirror. It looked messy, like always, but this time Michael wished it didn't. He wished he looked cleaner, smarter, and skinnier. He wished he looked like someone Jeremy would actually be attracted to.

Heading out of the bathroom, Michael walked quickly toward his bedroom where Jeremy was setting down his belongings. Dinner would be ready soon, and he was excited to spend as much time with Jeremy as possible, despite the anxiety gnawing at his chest. Michael bounded around the corner, only to run straight into the person he wanted to see.

The two boys flew through the air, and much to Michael's dismay, he realized that he was going to land on top of Jeremy. Michael quickly pushed his arms out, stopping his fall just in time.

 _Oh my god,_ Michael thought, _if I hadn't caught myself, I would've touched his lips. With my lips._

Michael looked down at Jeremy's face.

_His skin looks so soft._

Jeremy blinked a few times. Michael took a deep breath.

_This. This is my chance._

Michael shifted his arm, ignoring the siren going off in his mind as he combed his fingers through Jeremy's hair. He inched his face closer, slowly, mentally preparing himself for the possible demise of his friendship.

"Michael, what are you--"

_What the hell am I doing?_

Michael forced out an awkward laugh, plastering a fake smile on his face to go with it. He didn't want the moment to end, but he knew that he couldn't lose the only friend he'd ever been able to keep. Standing up slowly, Michael took a few deep breaths. Then, he put a hand out to help Jeremy off the ground. Jeremy accepted it.

"Sheesh, that was... ha, ha..." Michael said quietly.

"Yeah..." Jeremy responded.

_I'm always gonna be the goofy best friend. The "bro." At least I have this, but I almost screwed it up. Like everything else._

"We'd better head downstairs. My moms probably have dinner ready by now." Michael said, accepting his defeat.

 

\--<>\--

 

Dinner passed quickly-- Michael's parents asked Jeremy about school and his dad, both of which were described as "fine." Jeremy wished he could give them more of an answer, but he was still too shaken by what happened upstairs to think straight.

"Well, what do you two have planned for tonight? Video games?" Patty asked. She was more invested in carrying the conversation than her wife, Catherine. It's not that Catherine didn't care about the boys-- Jeremy had spent enough time with Michael's family to know that-- but Catherine was usually preoccupied with developing the plot of her latest mystery novel. She spent just about every minute of the day writing chapters in her head.

"Well, me and Jeremy talked about a few things we wanted to do, but we haven't really decided yet." Michael looked at Jeremy, smiling.

_God, his smile is so fucking cute._

"Video games sounds good to me," Jeremy said to Michael. "It's getting too late to go to the pool, and who knows how late the arcade is open until."

Michael nodded across the table. "Sounds good to me."

The conversation continued for a while longer, until everyone was stuffed. Jeremy thought that Michael's moms must perform magic in the kitchen-- their food was always the best. Both boys sprung up from the table and cleared their dishes, running back upstairs as quickly as possible.

Once inside the game room, Michael and Jeremy plopped down onto the couch. Michael had just gotten Super Smash Bros Ultimate a few days ago, and Jeremy was dead set on kicking Michael's ass after the incident before dinner. It was the only way Jeremy could get back at him.

_Or is it?_

Jeremy glanced over at Michael, who was seated only a few inches away.

_I could touch his hair. Pretend it's a joke. I mean, he owes me a little something after what he did._

"I don't have all of the characters yet, but I'm pretty sure you'll win no matter who you play as," Michael said, unaware of Jeremy's thoughts.

 

\--<>\--

 

Michael turned on the game. He'd been able to win a few new fighters-- Bayonetta, Ice Climbers, Pichu, and his personal favorite, Samus-- and he hoped that he and Jeremy could get a few more.

"I don't have all of the characters yet, but I'm pretty sure you'll win no matter who you play as," Michael said to Jeremy happily. He had willed himself not to think about the situation that he'd caused earlier, and especially not to think about how close he was to Jeremy.

But that wasn't a possibility when Jeremy slid closer, their thighs now pressed into each other. He was totally thinking about when he was on top of Jeremy and how amazing that felt.

And then, Jeremy reached up, and Michael felt a few fingers softly run through his messy hair, which Michael never managed to fix just the way he wanted to.

"Jer?" Michael asked, suddenly very confused by what Jeremy was doing.

"What?" Jeremy asked innocently.

"I, uh-- why are you...?"

"Oh, you mean," Jeremy didn't stop petting Michael's hair. Michael felt like he had one foot in heaven and one in hell. "This?" Jeremy gently tugged Michael's hair.

Michael was definitely remembering that sensation the next time he found himself some privacy.

"Y-yeah..." Michael said breathlessly.

"Well, I just assumed that this was, you know, normal. After all, you did it to me." Jeremy resumed combing through Michael's hair.

_Dammit. He's so fucking oblivious._

Michael wanted to tell him that it wasn't normal-- that he had very obviously been attempting to come on to Jeremy-- but he knew that would only make the weekend more awkward than it already was. And, besides, who could say no to the prettiest person on the planet giving them physical attention?

 

\--<>\--

 

After a few more moments, Jeremy pulled his hand away. He'd gotten what he wanted, and Michael seemed to believe his explaination.

The boys played countless rounds of Smash, losing count of who was winning as they lost themselves in the game. It wasn't until Patty came in to tell them to get into bed that they checked the time. 1:42 a.m. Jeremy hadn't stayed up this late since middle school.

"She's right. We should probably turn the game off for the night," Jeremy said, rubbing his eyes, which felt extremely heavy.

"Yeah," Michael replied, exiting off of the fighter selection screen and turning the Switch off.

The two stood up, walking down the hall to the bedroom. Jeremy grabbed his pajamas and toothbrush from his duffle bag and headed toward the bathroom. He shut the door and locked it, and started changing. While changing, he went through the events of the night in his head-- they seemed to have passed by so quickly.

Jeremy tried to find an evidence in his memories that Michael hadn't been joking when he touched Jeremy's hair, but that was impossible. There was just so much evidence disproving the possibility he had been making a romantic move. First of all, they were just friends, like they had always been. Jeremy reasoned with himself he was likely inventing sexual tension between himself and Michael that didn't exist. Second, Michael laughed about the incident. That meant it was a joke. That meant that actually touching Jeremy was hilarious to him. And, finally, Michael was the confident one. If he'd really wanted to do anything to Jeremy, he would have. There was no way Michael would back down, right?

Jeremy looked in the mirror.

_I'm pitiful. Look at me, trying to convince myself of-- of-- I don't know what. I don't know if I wanted that to be real or not. This is just too much._

He brushed his teeth in mental silence, focusing every thought on nothing but moving his toothbrush. Once finished, Jeremy grabbed his dirty clothes and walked back to the bedroom. He tried the handle, but it was locked.

"Micah?" Jeremy asked.

"Yeah, Jer?" Michael replied from the other side of the door.

"Can I come in?"

"Sure, I'm just changing."

 _Oh?_ Jeremy thought. Had it not been nearing 2 a.m., he probably wouldn't have accepted the invitation inside, but Jeremy was curious to see how much clothing Michael had on-- or, rather, how _little_ clothing Michael had on.

The lock made a clicking noise, and Jeremy took this as his cue to walk in. Michael was standing by the door, as he had just unlocked it, and he quickly turned away to go back to his dresser. Jeremy looked Michael up and down-- It's not pervy. I'm just curious, Jeremy thought-- and became excited by the sight of Michael in nothing but his boxers. Jeremy walked across the room and grabbed his sleeping bag, spreading it in an area of the floor that Michael had apparently cleared for Jeremy.

"Everything good?" Michael asked when he saw that Jeremy was staring at him.

"Uh, yeah, just... going to sleep."

Michael turned back around, pulling a shirt over his head. "Goodnight, then."

"Yep. Goodnight, Michael."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woah, okay, it's been a while. This isn't a promise that I'm going to continue this fic-- unfortunately, I have a lot on my plate right now, and this fic is kinda at the bottom of my list of priorities right now.  
> But, my thoughts drifted back to it today, so I decided to check it out and see if it was even salvageable. While I can't say the writing is my best work, I can say that I like the general idea and plot of the story. I may be able to pull the last few chapters out of my ass at a later date.  
> But, for now, have this gem. It was a finished draft I wrote back when I was actively working on the fic, but I never got around to posting it. I haven't edited it at all, so please excuse any mistakes. I just figured y'all deserved an update after almost two months, eheh. This is my most well-received fanfiction, so I feel bad for neglecting it. 
> 
> My thoughts for this chapter:  
> Jfc, Jeremy, you are a huge fucking pervert. I probably wouldn't write you like this in my newer fanfictions, but the characterization of you present in this old story of mine feels authentic and true to your character in the musical on a whole other level.  
> And, Michael, my baby, please stop beating around the bush. Jeremy is fucking flirting with you, you poor boy! Ya really are oblivious.


End file.
